Life in another country can seem like an exciting adventure, but you may feel confused about planning your expenses before moving to another country. Smart decisions and simple planning can save you thousands of dollars while you live the life. Before you leave, you should first tie up any loose ends that you might have. For example, if you have any mobile phone, cable, or TV contracts, look at what you will have to pay to exit the contract.
Travel Light
Before you head out, you can save a lot through not taking half of your home with you. Be especially careful of hauling too many books on planes because they weigh a lot and will send your luggage costs through the roof. You can give away some of the items that you have or even hold a garage sale to sell off some of the things that you don’t want to travel with.
Here is a look at the average cost of shipment. Say that you want to move from the United States to England. You can expect the average two to three-bedroom home to cost $5,660, which will have a real impact on your budget. The lighter you travel, the more you will have leftover for the costs that matter the most to you. Consider the weather of the new country to understand if you truly need to bring along all your wooly mittens.
Build Your Daily Budget
You should construct a daily budget from what you currently do. In some countries, you will find that you pay much less. For example, in comparison to the United States, Mexico costs 185.66 percent less than the United States. You can probably live a more lavish lifestyle in a country like this. Nevertheless, places like France, England, and Denmark all have a higher cost of living.
Look at some of the daily costs of activities that you like to do and put it into the budget to determine what you will pay on average. It is important to note that you usually want to overestimate your budget and come up with extra money rather than to underestimate what you will pay and find yourself with additional expenses that you can’t afford.
Getting a Visa
One of the first big hurdles you will have to overcome is getting a visa. Even when a company or individual sponsors you, it can still cost a great deal of cash. For the United States, you can expect to pay $5,000 or more, and the actual visa cost will usually range from $200 to $400.
Having Money While Abroad
You could set up a bank account abroad, but this can be tricky, and many people abroad choose another route. Instead, you can choose to keep your cash in the bank account back in your home country. You use a debit card to access it through the ATMs in any country that you would choose to travel. This is perhaps the easiest, but some people choose to set up a bank account in their current country because of how they don’t have to pay foreign transaction fees, which can save them a lot of cash. Sending money online in emergencies has also helped many people who lived abroad.
Depending on the bank, you will usually pay an estimated three percent for any transaction that you make abroad on credit cards. The cost for an ATM will usually cost $5, plus three percent of the dollar value.
The Cost of Property
When you go to buy a property in another country, do not jump into any deal blindly. You could wind up wasting money that you weren’t prepared to lose. To get the most value, you must check the neighborhood to make sure that you will invest in a good neighborhood. The disadvantage of looking at properties online is that it can be difficult to know the neighborhood type you will be in. Many stories exist of people who paid a lot of money for a property only to find out later that they bought into an area with a high crime rate. Look at all the costs and research of looking into a property, such as:
- Surrounding property values
- Inspections
- Submit applications
- Security deposit
With some moving companies, they will cover everything so that you don’t have to worry about it. They will move your cat to redirect your mail to help you to find a nanny in your new country. Planning your expenses means that you have to sit down and take careful consideration of everything going on. You have to look at the expenses that aren’t necessary, and in some cases, you may find it valuable to slash the cost.
